Fire-fighter&#39;s apparatus.



No.80'8,587.- 'PATENTED 1150.26,.1905.

.w. w. THOMPSON.

FIRE FIGHTERS APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 10,1904.

3 BHBETS-SHEET l No. 808,587. PATBNTED DEC. 26, 1905. W. W. THOMPSON.

FIR-E FIGHTERS APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED 0GT.10,1904.

3 SHEETSSH-EBT 2.

No- 808,587. PATENTED DEC. 26, 1905. W. W, THOMPSON.

FIRE FIGHTERS APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION PILED 0GT.10.1904.-

- 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3' UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 26, 1905.

Application filed October 10, 1904. Serial No. 227,949.

T at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM W. THOMP- soN, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of St. Louis,Missouri, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Fire- Fighters Apparatus, of which thefollowing is a specification containing a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming apart hereof.

My invention relates to improvements in fire-fighters apparatus; and itconsists of the novel features herein shown, described, and claimed. I

In the drawings, Figure 1 1s a perspective illustrating a burningbuilding and the use of my improved fire-fighters apparatus. Fig. 2 is aperspective, upon an enlarged scale, showing the grappling-hook and itsuse. Fig. 3 is a perspective, upon an enlarged scale, of the means ofattaching the derrick to the building. Fig. 4 is a perspective, upon anenlarged scale, of the derrick-mast. Fig. 5 is a detail plan, upon anenlarged scale, parts being shown in section, of the attaching meansshown in Fig. 3, parts being broken away to economize space. detail ofthe reel.

Referring to the drawings in detail, my improved fire fighters apparatuscomprises a derrick-mast 10, adapted to be attached to the building;apulley 11, attached to the mast; a pulley 12, adapted to be attached toa lamppost or any other rigid object; an endless rope 13, wound upon therubber reel 14 for transportation and adapted to run over the pulleys 11 and 12; the grappling-hooks15, adapted to engage the endless rope andbe carried thereby, and the flexible loops 16, carried by thegrappling-hooks.

The derrick-mast is a plece of T-iron having a point 17 to engage in thewindowsill and having a supporting-chain 18 to connect with theattaching means and having an eye or link 19 to connect with the pulley11.

The attaching means comprises the T-bars 20 and 21, placed together, theparallel flanges of one bar butting against the parallel flanges of theother bar and forming the frame, there being ratchet-teeth 22 upon thethird flange of the bar-21; a bearing-block 23, slidingly mounted uponone end of the frame, the teeth 24 extending from the bearing-block 23;the pawl 25, carried by the bearing-block to en- Fig. 6 is a centralsectional ing the pawl; the spring 27 for holding the pawl yieldinglyagainst the teeth; a second bearing-block 28, slidingly mounted upon theother end of the frame, the teeth 29 extending from the secondbearing-block; the rigid post 30, extending from the end of the frameadjacent to the second bearingblock; the tightening-screw 31, operatingthrough the post 30 and engaging the bearing-block 28; the handle 32 foroperating the tighteningscrew, and the hook 33, extending from thebearing-block 23 and adapted to connect with the free end of the chain18. The attaching means is intended to be placed with the teeth 29inside of the window-frame and the teeth 24 outside of the window-frame.The bearing-block 23 will be moved as far as possible toward thebearing-block 28 and then locked by the ratchet. Then the handle 32 willbe operated to tighten the attaching means and drive the teeth 24 and 29firmly into the window-frame. Then the derrick-mast 10 is placed in aninclined position with the point 17 in the lower sill of thewindow-frame, and the chain 18 is placed upon the hook 33. Then thepulley 11 is connected to the link 19.

The reel comprises a cylinder 34 of nonfrangible material; the rubberdisks 35 and 36, attached to the ends of the cylinder 34 by bolts 37,and a hook 38, attached to the cylinder 34 to engage the rope and startthe winding. The endless rope is applied to the hook 38 and the reelrotated to wind the rope upon the cylinder between the disks 35 and 36,so that the rope can be conveniently transported. When the apparatus isin use, the reel containing the rope is carried to the desired floor ofthe building. One end of the rope is attached to any convenient objectand the reel is thrown out of the window, so that it will unwind therope. The rubber disks 35 and 36 are strong and flexible, so thatthrowing the reel out of the window will do little if any damage, andthe reel is readily disconnected from the unwound rope. The pulley 12 isattached to a telegraph-pole or any suitable rigid object upon theground, the endless rope is applied to the pulleys 11 and 12 by openingthe frames in the usual way, and the rope will run-round and round overthe pulleys 11 and 12.

The grappling-hook 15 comprises an eye 39, to which both ends of theloop 16 are attached a main frame 40, extending from the eye 39;parallel hooks 41 and 42, extending gage the teeth 22; the handle 26 foroperat- I laterally from the main frame, and a finger IIO 43, extendingfrom the main frame 40 in an opposite direction from the hooks 41 and42, said finger being located between said hooks and said finger beingpreferably square or rectangular in cross-section. The grapplinghookthus constructed is attached to the endless rope by passing the ropethrough the hook 41', half-way around the frame 40, in front of thefinger 43, backwardly around the frame 40, and upwardly through the hook42. An ordinary rope can be applied through a grappling-hook constructedand applied as described. The hooks are readily applied or disconnected,and any suitable object may be attached to the endless rope by passingthe loop 16 around the object and passing the grappling-hook through theloop. In Fig. 1 I have shown the manner of elevating the canvastarpaulins 44 to be used by the salvage corps in covering the goods inprotecting them from water. In another part of the view I have shown theloops attached to the hose. One or more men engage the end of the ropeand pull it in the proper direction to elevate the tarpaulins or hose orother objects.

I claim-- 7 1. In a fire-fighters apparatus, a ratchet bar adapted to bepositioned against the side of the window-frame, hooks adjustablyarranged on said ratchet-bar, an open link secured to one of the hookson the ratchetbar, a mast having aipointed end, a chain secured to theopposite end and adapted to be engaged in the open link carried by thehook of the ratchet-bar, an endless cable adapted to be carried by theupper end of the mast, and grappling-hooks detachably carried by thecable; substantially as specified.

2. In a fire-fighters apparatus, the combination of a ratchet-bar, ahook arranged to slide on one end of said ratchet-bar, a screw threadedshaft for operating said hook, a sliding hook operating on the oppositeend of the ratchetbar, a hand-lever and pawl for actuating saidlast-mentioned hook on the ratchetbar, and a derrick-mast havinga-pointed end and adapted to be secured at its upper end to the slidinghook on the ratchet-bar; substantially as specified.

3. In a fire-fighters apparatus, the combination with an endless cable,of a grapplinghook comprising a shank, a loop integral with one endthereof, a pair of hooks eXtendinglaterally from the shank, and a fingerextend.- ing laterally from the shank in an opposite direction from thehooks substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inpresence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM W. THOMPSON.

Witnesses:

ALFRED A. EioKs, EDW. M. HARRINGTON.

